4 ms·

If Apple made the iphone5 a Sprint exclusive, it would be unavailable to every single one of their existing customers. Literally...Every...Single...One. There'

If Apple made the iphone5 a Sprint exclusive, it would be unavailable to every single one of their existing customers. Literally...Every...Single...One. There's a better chance that Tim Cook will eat an iPhone than announce a Sprint exclusive.

eropple 15y ago
There are rumors of a 4S, though, with the upgraded A5 inside an iPhone 4 form factor. Which, in such a situation (and I agree it's not likely), could go to the other carriers and make the 5 a Sprint exclusive. (Again, doubtful, but it would address that problem.)
mjs 15y ago
... in the USA. But yes, seems unlikely.
gigawatt 15y ago
I'm out of contract on AT&T with a 3GS. The exclusive 5 on Sprint would be available and very attractive to me. Granted, that doesn't make it a good idea, but going exclusive with Sprint doesn't eliminate EVERY current iphone owner from upgrading.
jwallaceparker 15y ago
Customers are loyal to the iPhone, not the network it runs on. I left Sprint to get an iPhone. If I need to rejoin Sprint to get the next iPhone, that's no problem.
- equalarrow 15y ago
  Yah, exactly. Most of the people I know still in contract with AT&T are waiting to jump ship to whatever carrier will have the iPhone 5. My gf and I are both a year in on our iPhone 4 contracts with AT&T and we have no problem dumping them. You have to figure how much is your time really worth?! All the AT&T network b.s. (esp in San Francisco & NYC) that we've had to deal with costs me and my gf much more than the cancellation fee ever will. That said, the cancellation fee is still a load of crap.
- agileqr 15y ago
  I wouldn't say that customers are exclusively device-loyal and network-agnostic. The convenience of using the same device can be outweighed by frustration over the network's coverage, downtime, etc. Everyone has different breaking points, but I guarantee that if you couldn't get reliable service where you spend most of your time, you'd strongly consider a different device!
- Lewisham 15y ago
  I wonder how true this is outside techies. I'm personally network-agnostic, as I only use my "phone" for data and calls from the wife. I use about 100 minutes a month, so it doesn't matter. My wife, however, makes at least 60 minutes of calls on more days than not, keeping in touch with friends and family (basically all the social lubrication I do with email and Google+). For her, the network effect is incredibly strong: all her friends and family are on Verizon, so she is very hesitant to switch as she gets the in-network minutes free. It was a huge deal for her when I announced I wanted to leave Verizon (for a Virgin Mobile Android) and how many minutes that would add to her plan. I think a lot of people are loyal to their network not because of what they get from it, but about the people they know on it.
  - chomkian 15y ago
    This is where iMessage and FaceTime, GoogleVoice (via unlimited data), MagicJack and other such services step in to forge the link.
  - dvdhsu 15y ago
    > For her, the network effect is incredibly strong: all her friends and family are on Verizon, so she is very hesitant to switch as she gets the in-network minutes free. Sprint has unlimited mobile to mobile for plans with data, so as long as the other person is on a mobile line (probable since they are on Verizon), the call is free.
chomkian 15y ago
The customers on AT&T & Verizon would still get an iPhone 4S with many of the iPhone5 features.

eropple 15y ago

There are rumors of a 4S, though, with the upgraded A5 inside an iPhone 4 form factor. Which, in such a situation (and I agree it's not likely), could go to the other carriers and make the 5 a Sprint exclusive. (Again, doubtful, but it would address that problem.)

mjs 15y ago

... in the USA. But yes, seems unlikely.

gigawatt 15y ago

I'm out of contract on AT&T with a 3GS. The exclusive 5 on Sprint would be available and very attractive to me. Granted, that doesn't make it a good idea, but going exclusive with Sprint doesn't eliminate EVERY current iphone owner from upgrading.

jwallaceparker 15y ago

Customers are loyal to the iPhone, not the network it runs on. I left Sprint to get an iPhone. If I need to rejoin Sprint to get the next iPhone, that's no problem.

equalarrow 15y ago
Yah, exactly. Most of the people I know still in contract with AT&T are waiting to jump ship to whatever carrier will have the iPhone 5. My gf and I are both a year in on our iPhone 4 contracts with AT&T and we have no problem dumping them. You have to figure how much is your time really worth?! All the AT&T network b.s. (esp in San Francisco & NYC) that we've had to deal with costs me and my gf much more than the cancellation fee ever will. That said, the cancellation fee is still a load of crap.
agileqr 15y ago
I wouldn't say that customers are exclusively device-loyal and network-agnostic. The convenience of using the same device can be outweighed by frustration over the network's coverage, downtime, etc. Everyone has different breaking points, but I guarantee that if you couldn't get reliable service where you spend most of your time, you'd strongly consider a different device!
Lewisham 15y ago
I wonder how true this is outside techies. I'm personally network-agnostic, as I only use my "phone" for data and calls from the wife. I use about 100 minutes a month, so it doesn't matter. My wife, however, makes at least 60 minutes of calls on more days than not, keeping in touch with friends and family (basically all the social lubrication I do with email and Google+). For her, the network effect is incredibly strong: all her friends and family are on Verizon, so she is very hesitant to switch as she gets the in-network minutes free. It was a huge deal for her when I announced I wanted to leave Verizon (for a Virgin Mobile Android) and how many minutes that would add to her plan. I think a lot of people are loyal to their network not because of what they get from it, but about the people they know on it.
- chomkian 15y ago
  This is where iMessage and FaceTime, GoogleVoice (via unlimited data), MagicJack and other such services step in to forge the link.
- dvdhsu 15y ago
  > For her, the network effect is incredibly strong: all her friends and family are on Verizon, so she is very hesitant to switch as she gets the in-network minutes free. Sprint has unlimited mobile to mobile for plans with data, so as long as the other person is on a mobile line (probable since they are on Verizon), the call is free.

chomkian 15y ago

The customers on AT&T & Verizon would still get an iPhone 4S with many of the iPhone5 features.